[updated September 2017]What is the best beard oil and what does this really mean anyway? If you’re like me, you might wonder; is there a way to tell when an oil is actually the best, and if so, where do you even begin?

And by the way, since when do we actually care so much about a beard oil in the first place? How and when did this beard care craze all started?

Before we dig into the details and the top beard oil reviews, I would like to make a brief introduction. This will give you an understanding of what beard oil and the important criteria to consider before clicking the “buy button”.

I do understand however, that not everybody is interested in beard oil background knowledge and wants to go straight to the chase. And I’ve got you all covered.

You might have noticed in the beginning of this post that there’s a clickable table of contents. If you click on any of the headlines, it will take you to the respective section of this article and you can skip anything that you don’t feel like reading. I included this so that you read exactly what you want without wasting any time.

But there’s more.

If you want to get a fine beard oil ASAP and you don’t have the time or patience to go through the entire post, you can have a look at the below table.

These are 5 of the greatest beard oils on the market and you can’t go wrong with any of them. This doesn’t mean that they are far better than the others that follow later on. It’s just that in my opinion, these are the ones that tick all the boxes when it comes to buying a great beard oil.

I’ll explain the beard oil trend as well as its recent history with facts and figures.

Go through briefly what beard oil is.

What does beard oil consist of.

Why should you use beard oil.

How to use beard oil.

What do you need to know before you buy any.

What are the criteria for selecting a beard oil.

Finally, what is the beard oil you that works best for your beard.

How it all bearded

If you think about it, it’s not such a long time since men started using beard oil at its current form. Until few years ago, the all natural look was the one that prevailed.

Only a few bearded men were actually using a type of oil that nourishes beards. And in most cases it was something like coconut or even olive oil.

The first men that started using a facial hair oil were Native Americans. Due to the rough and dry climate, they started using a mix of oils to keep their beards soft and moisturized. Yet, it wasn’t until the 1930’s until beard oil became commercially available.

Beard oils and beardepreneurs are thriving the past few years. You see new local producers popping up every now and then. New beard oil scents, bottles, sizes, brands and so on.

The first wave

As you will see from the following graph, the search for beard oil started increasing at the end of 2013. During that year, we see the first signs of search increase.

Within 2014, something amazing happened. As you’ll see from the graph, the searches of beard oil exploded in 2014. New bearded oil entrepreneurs, new beard oil scents and more people talking about beards. This hype results in creating new needs and a new industry.

Beard oil searches during 2004-2015

What was the cause for such shift in trends and searches for beard oil?

Until a decade ago or even less, beards weren’t as accepted as they are nowadays. People preferred a clean, shaved look. Not to mention, when the dress code was formal.

Men who wore beards considered as people who didn’t care about their appearance. This perception gradually changed and beard became more acceptable.

Both in business and fashion world, you could see more and more people starting wearing beards.

You see them everywhere. Actors and fashion icons like Brad Pitt. Athletes like David Beckham or James Harden. All of them having one thing in common. They all have beard and they love talking about them.

This new trend in the world of stars, was a major influence in the increase of interest in beard oil.

Awesome beard oils, great beard balms and waxes are slowly getting the attention they deserve. People begin to accept beards as a fashion trend that came here to stay.

Manliness awareness

Another reason for the upward trend of beard oil, is the increasing awareness of prostate cancer. Campaigns such as Movember and Decembeard, starting making moustaches and beards fashionable. Each year, more men participated in these campaigns. And when these campaigns were over, men continued maintaining their facial hair.

The below graph shows the pick of searches for the search terms “beard oil” and “beards”. Interesting enough, both search terms follow a similar trend during November – December 2014.

Beards and beard oil searches during 2004-2015

A new man grooming trend started. People started growing beards and visiting barbers for trimming and shaping. Their cabinets started getting new products every month. Everything evolves around beards. Barber shops started competing in numbers with women’s (nail) salons.

Well, you get where this is going.

The beardpresentative

The new beard industry has a representative and this is beard oil. Why beard oil? Check this graph below and see the trend.

As the graph proves, beard oil is the clear winner compared to beard balm and beard wax in the searches rally of beard care products. And this is the reason why this article wants to find you a great beard oil for your glorious beard.

So what’s beard oil?

Even from the name, you understand that it has to be an oil for your beard.

Beard oils are usually mixes of carrier oils and essential oils. On top of that, you will find many beard oils containing fragrances and vitamins.

Different ingredients offer different properties to the beard oil. The properties relate to conditioning and scent. Other beard oils may have ingredients that are great for various skin conditions, such as dry or acne prone faces.

I’ve written an extensive article on what beard oil is that can hopefully solve any beard related questions you might have.

What does it consist of

Carrier Oils

Carrier oils are the ones that are found in higher concentration in the beard oil mix.

They are called carrier since they “carry” the essential oils. We’ll see on the next section what this means in practice.

Common ingredients are jojoba, argan, coconut, hemp seed or sweet almond oil. It’s no coincidence what all these oils are found as random combinations in beard oils.

These kind of ingredients are already popular in hair care and skin care products as they are well known for their moisturizing and softening properties.

All mixes of carrier oils give you different properties. What you don’t know unfortunately, is at what percentage each carrier oil is found in a beard oil. It would be great to know for example that there’s more argan oil than castor oil or similarly.

And speaking of these two oils, argan is almost 4 times more expensive than castor oil. Just a quick hint why some beard oils are more expensive than others.

Essential Oils

In a single beard oil bottle, one can find (sometimes even) more that 10 different essential oils. This depends on the scent and properties a beard oil producer wants to achieve. Such examples are lemon, lime, cedar wood, sandalwood, eucalyptus and tea tree oil.

All these ingredients contribute for scent, extra vitamins and minerals.

Essential oils are found in small volumes in a beard oil. Most of them are oils derived from citric fruits. Their acidity and aggressiveness, in penetrating the skin, can cause skin irritation if used alone. This is why only a few drops of essential oils are more than enough in a beard oil mix and the rest of the solution consists of carrier oils.

Additional interesting ingredients

Besides carrier and essential oils, there are beard oil producers that don’t just stop there.

It’s not uncommon to find ingredients such as omega-3 fats, vitamin E, B1, B2 and so on.

They also infuse fragrances and ingredients that you would never imagine. Examples are tobacco, ox fat and gun powder. And these are only 3 examples from hundreds, if not thousands, of uncommon mixes.

If you’d like to know more about the ingredients that one can find in a beard oil, you can go ahead and read my DIY beard oil recipe guide.

Why should you use beard oil

No matter how long your beard is, beard oil can be great for several reasons.

Reduces the itchiness

When you first started growing a beard from scratch, you must have felt the itchiness that doesn’t go away. This feeling won’t go unnoticed, especially a couple of weeks after you start growing one.

The reason for this feeling is that the facial hair becomes more curly and pointy as it grows. The hair touches your face and causes that beard itch. Now, beard oil, makes the facial hair softer and reduces the itchiness at a whole new level.

For longer beards, it reduces the itchiness due to dry skin and dandruff.

Longer beards normally require larger amount of beard oil. The reason is that the natural oils that your face skin produces -sebum oil, are not enough to keep the hair and face moisturized. This is why long beard wearers need to apply beard oil to both beard and skin where their facial hair comes out.

Beard is more manageable

Unless you go for the all natural look, beard oil helps you groom your beard easier. By making the beard softer, beard oil helps you comb it and shape it. Your facial hair gets softer and split ends are reduced.

Shaping it, is much simpler than ever before.

Even though it’s not meant to shape your beard like beard balm or wax, it certainly helps. You notice the difference in the morning when you wake up. If you apply beard oil the night before, the “bed beard” isn’t going to be that persisting. This way, you can shape your beard in a presentable manner without too much trouble.

How to use beard oil?

Using beard oil is not something complicated. On the contrary, it’s very simple. Yet, you need to be careful with the way and the amount you apply.

How much

In terms of amount, only a few drops, a dime size, is more than enough for your entire beard. If you put too much, there is a great chance that you’ll make your beard look and feel oily and greasy.

It will only take you a couple of times until you get a good grasp on how much beard oil your beard needs.

Which way

There a few ways to apply beard oil but ultimately they all result at the same thing.

You’ll have to make sure that you apply the beard oil on the entire length of your facial hair. Apart from your beard, don’t forget to work your way towards your skin as well. You want to ensure that beard oil will the roots of your facial hair. That said, you will maintain both a healthy skin and a soft beard.

With your hands

Pour a few drops of beard oil in your hands and rub them together. Then apply the beard oil from the ends of the facial hair and work your way towards the face. Don’t forget to rub your fingers on your cheeks.

With an eye dropper on your beard

This is similar to the previous way to apply beard oil. This time, instead of pouring the oil drops on your hands or brush, you do that directly on your beard. Only a few drops on your beard are more than enough.

When the beard oil is on your beard already, use either your hands or a hair brush to distribute the beard oil on your hair and skin.

With a boar bristle brush

flickr.com/heinrock

No matter which way you apply beard oil on your facial hair, you’ll make a whole better job if you use a natural hair brush.

I personally suggest a good boar bristle brush. The reason is that it consists of natural hair. Natural hair is softer, retains the oil better and distributes it evenly across the length of the hair.

Using a brush to distribute the oil, also gives you the chance to comb your beard. This is great for keeping it soft and at same time, you make it look presentable.

How often

You really don’t have to be very disciplined with a schedule. That said, you can always apply beard oil in the morning right after a shower, to get your day started. This way you’ll have a soft and shiny beard the entire day.

Another time that you can apply beard oil, is just before you go to sleep. By applying it during the night, you’ll have a softer beard in the morning. On top of that, you won’t have to resist the temptation to stroke it during the night, which is beneficial for a healthy beard.

As for the frequency of beard oil application, this varies depending on several factors and they are mostly personal. Factors such as a man’s job, physical activity, skin type, age, ethnicity may require different frequency.

Nevertheless, many men prefer to apply beard oil at least once and sometimes, two times per day.

What you do you need to know before you buy one

Carrier Oils

Different carrier oils will give the beard oil its properties and sometimes scent as well. These oils comprise the majority of beard oil mix which in many cases reach 99% of the entire mix.

Be extra careful if you are allergic to any of the ingredients contained in the beard oil. There are carrier oils such as sweet almond that could potentially cause allergic reactions to a person (allergic to almonds). Same applies to all oils that a beard oil consists of.

Essential Oils

The essential oils are usually the type of oils that you the scent along with extra vitamins and minerals. You want to make sure that you’re buying a beard oil that feels and smells great. Otherwise, if the beard oil has bad smell, it won’t be a problem only for you but also for those surrounding you.

Conduct a small research how each essential oil smells, and proceed with the purchase accordingly.

Scents and other ingredients

Beard oils may contain fragrances or other ingredients, as indicated earlier, such as gun powder. Even though these ingredients give a manly feeling and make them unique, make sure that you are happy with the way this beard oil feels and smells.

Nevertheless, experimenting with a beard oil, wouldn’t be a bad idea anyway.

Tip: If you want to experiment with different beard oils and scents, don’t buy large bottles. Get small ones so that you won’t regret throwing them away if you can’t stand them.

Get a pen and paper. The criteria to selecting the best beard oil

Ingredients

A great mix of ingredients is what makes a beard oil great. You’re should be searching for something that has great smell while keeping your manliness at manly levels.

The set of ingredients is important when you expect specific properties from beard oil. This is especially the case when your skin is not considered normal type, and you often have oily or dry facial hair.

Size

The size of beard oil bottle is a crucial factor for selecting a good beard oil.

Beard oil sizes usually come in 1 or 2oz bottles. Few of them may come to even smaller sizes and some come at larger sizes.

A good thing to keep in mind is to get the smallest size available if you’re purchasing the particular beard oil for the first time.

Since beard oil doesn’t come for free, you first want to buy a small beard oil bottle, try it out and if you’re happy, you go ahead and get a big one. Otherwise, if you buy a large bottle and you don’t like something about the beard oil there are two outcomes. You’ll either have to tolerate it and apply it on your beard or throw it away. Both options are neither ideal nor pleasant.

Another reason why you need to prefer beard oils that don’t come in very large size is the shelf life and period after opening (PAO).

When a beard oil consists of natural ingredients, you’ll notice that its PAO is somewhere around a year. Therefore, if you get a beard oil that has more than 3oz, you might be in a situation that you’re not able to finish it during this timeline. The beard oil might get bad and you might have to throw it away.

So the idea here is to get a beard oil size based on how long your beard is and how much time you’ve got until you finish it.

Brand

There are many brands producing beard oil and many new ones are poping up every month.

When you want to buy a beard oil, you’ll be better off with an established brand. From my experience, it’s better to stick to one of the most popular beard oils. This ensures the consistency of the beard oil and the quality of the ingredients.

Since you’ll be putting this product on your face, a good, established brand ensures that the product has been tested for health and safety.

Apart from the health and safety aspect, an established brand is able to deliver the product in timely manner and this brings us to the next factor what makes a beard oil the best.

Availability and Service

This is a very important factor. No matter how good a beard oil is, it needs to be available as well.

Most of beard oil brands are not available in local stores of pharmacies. The vast majority needs to be ordered online via the eshop of the respective brand or from online marketplaces like amazon or ebay.

There are many cases that I’m reading from buyers that they ordered a beard oil online, directly from the brand’s eshop, and the product wasn’t available. This resulted in several days of delay.

Certainly, this isn’t the end of the world. However, it creates a frustration to the buyer. Especially, when you’re excited and eager to try out your new goodies. Therefore, you will want to make sure that the brand of beard oil you’re purchasing, replenishes its stock in a timely manner.

Getting a beard oil from a known brand, doesn’t ensure short delivery times and availability, but there will be less chances that stock is running low and/or dries out.

Price

Obviously price is important to everything you purchase. Depending on the brand, size and offer, you will find a price between $10 and $40 for a 1oz beard oil.

There are a few brands that have started offering beard oil subscriptions.

This is particularly worthwhile, if you like a specific brand and you’re using beard oil in daily basis. This way, you should expect to reduce the amount of money you spend each month for beard oil and on top of that, you’ll never run out of it.

In my opinion, you should avoid buying beard oils that appear to be much cheaper than others.

Even though producing a beard oil isn’t the most expensive thing, there are some costs that increase the overall price and in most cases, it has to do with the health and safety as well as the business model of a business.

And I explain what I mean.

There are many cases of beard oils that don’t have MSDS (material safety data sheet), no registration with cosmetics directory (in Europe you’re obliged to do that) and on top of that, they don’t have any business address on the bottles or boxes.

All these things cost money -indirectly, and those companies that don’t respect the regulations are able to sell the product cheaper than other brands.

Be careful what brand you choose and don’t let the very low price fool you. After all, this is a product that you’ll be putting on your face. Better safe than sorry.

Beard length?

When you’re ready to buy a beard oil, the length of your beard doesn’t really matter. Most (if not all) oils are suitable for all beard types and lengths and make no distinction.

Some beard oils might be greasier than others due to different mixes of carrier and essential oils. What makes the difference however, is the amount that you apply on your beard. That being said, no matter which one you buy, longer beards require more beard oil than shorter and vice versa.

What you need to remember is that you don’t have to worry about finding a suitable beard oil for stubble, short or long beard.

One size fits all.

What is the best beard oil?

Hopefully, the above gives you a good background knowledge when you want to buy a beard oil.

I concluded to the 9 oils from few of the most popular brands, based on the above discussed factors and criteria. (EDIT: I included 2 more on the list to reflect the changes in the bearded industry)

The fact that I selected 9 beard oils doesn’t mean that others that I haven’t included, don’t fulfil the standards that I set. It’s just that there are so many companies that makes it simply impossible to include each one of them.

Bear in mind that this isn’t a list with beard oil rankings but rather than my top pick of 9 awesome beard oils that I’ve tried, some of them for years.

Seven Potions Pure Equilibrium Beard Oil

Seven Potions is growing steadily into a premium beard care brand with top-notch ingredients. More specifically, the Pure Equilibrium version is a fragrance free beard oil, which means that it doesn’t smell anything and it’s packed with 100% natural and organic ingredients. Here’s what it contains:

Jojoba Oil

Sweet Almond Oil

Apricot Kernel oil

Crambe Seed Oil

Vitamin E

All these ingredients will make your beard softer than ever before and beard itch will be a thing of the past.

Just like the ingredients, each component of the bottle and packaging has a particular purpose.

The amber glass bottle ensures that sunlight and oxygen won’t oxidise the oils while keeping them fresh.

The eyedropper cap allows for accurate doses so that you don’t waste not even a drop of oi.

Everything ends up on your beard and not on your clothes. Believe it or not but this is one of the few beards oils out there that has a tamper evident cap. This way, you know for sure that this is definitely a new product.

Compared to other beard oil on the market, it’s one of the few that has all the necessary written information on the label. You’ll be surprised how many companies don’t adhere to cosmetics guidelines, and fortunately, Seven Potions isn’t one of them. All the information about the company, directions, precautions are clearly written on both bottle and box.

Speaking of packaging, the beard oil comes in a beautiful and thick carton box with an inner platform that keeps the bottle stable and safe for transportation. It also makes an excellent gift for you or your beloved bearded one.

Beardbrand Tea Tree Beard Oil

Beardbrand is establishing a strong brand name in beard oils and it’s definitely one of the great ones. This fine beard oil has a clear and fresh scent while it nourishes and protects your beard.

Needless to say, Beardbrand does an excellent job promoting their products and they know how to create a great customer experience. All you have to do is look at the beautiful beard oil bottle as well as it’s box. The size of the bottle is 1oz.

Don’t let the small size fool you. A little goes a long way and normally, even with daily use, this beard oil should last you around 2-4 months.

Besides this scent, you can also consider a few more that beardbrand has available, such as Urban Garden or Tree Ranger. They’ve got quite a few choices and if you ask me, they’re all top beards oils that you won’t regret trying them out.

Jack Black Beard Oil

If you’re following this blog for while, you might have noticed that I’m a big fan of the particular brand.

Jack Black is one of those companies that positively surprises you. And this beard oil is no different.

First of all, we’re talking about an all natural and organic beard conditioning oil that is dermatologically tested. You might be thinking that all beard oils are actually tested, yet, most aren’t.

Now, the combination of carrier and essential oils is so unique that no other brand is currently carrying it. Everybody talks about the benefits of jojoba and argan oil but not Jack Black.

More specifically, it includes:

Marula, an oil that has light texture and it’s excellent for dry skin and hair while containing 4 times more Vitamin C than oranges.

Plum oil that is great for moisturizing the skin while the skin absorbs it quickly so that no greasiness left on your beard.

As for the Kalahair Melon oil, it contains hydrating and regenerating properties that makes it ideal for weak hair.

On the scent department, you won’t be disappointed, although it’s not the most mouthwatering beard oil you’ve ever smelled. It’s got a clean and fresh scent that it’s not overpowering.

Overall, the particular beard oil is great for someone who wants something different than what’s available already out there. It’s excellent for fighting beard itch and offers great softening and natural shine to your facial hair. Lastly, due to penetrating properties and light texture of its ingredients, the skin and hair absorbs the oil quickly leaving no greasiness behind.

Even though it’s not the cheapest product you will find online, this is definitely a top-notch beard oil that you can consider on your next purchase.

CREMO Astonisingly Superior Beard Oil

This is not the first time I try a CREMO product as I’ve used their brushless shaving cream in the past. In fact, it’s one of the best shaving creams I’ve ever used. If you’re shaping your beard, you should definitely give that one a try.

Back to beards…

CREMO brings us a beard oil with a great mix of carrier oils. In fact, this product contains all those carrier oils that I consider idea in a beard care product. They offer great moisturizing and nourishment properties without being too greasy. A great formula overall.

When it comes to scent, it’s got a classy woody scent. If you’ve tried a few beard oils for some time now, this scent might seem familiar in a good way.

Great properties and a very good refreshing scent packed in a 1 oz bottle. It might not be the largest size available but the value that you get for what you pay is more than satisfactory. That being said, the price for this beard oil is on the low end and considering that not many beard oils at this price have the same properties and excellent quality, this beard oil is a great option.

All in all, this is a beard conditioning oil is worth the money and you won’t regret it.

Beard Buddy Beard Oil

Another beard care producer that has an excellent beard oil. It’s a bit pricey but it comes at a large 2oz bottle. If you’re concerned about the price, there’s also a smaller bottle available.

Unfortunately, they don’t disclose the exact essential oils that they’re using (it’s what in the cosmetics called “trade secret”) in their beard oil. If I try to describe it, it’s a bit sweet and woody at the same time. You also notice a bit of coconut scent due to the coconut oil that it’s got. Overall, it’s very pleasant.

In terms of performance, it’s a good beard oil for short beard. Why only short?

Well, it’s good for a long beard as well. However, if you want to get the best value, you would want to get a cheaper beard oil for long beards. Longer beards need more oil. But again, it’s up to your budget and your personal taste.

Grave Before Shave Beard Oil (Bay Rum Scent)

Grave Before Shave (GBS), it’s among the most popular beard care producers.

Besides their beards oils, I’ve also tried their balms and waxes. All of them come at very good prices and the best thing about their products is the variety of scents you can choose from.

Speaking of scents, this Grave before Shave beard oil has a very interesting scent of Bay Rum with coconut afternotes. A very pleasant combination indeed.

You can also try some other mouthwatering scents like Gentleman, Head Hunter, Viking, Cigar and many others. You can’t say that they don’t know how to pick beard oils names.

Lastly, the price to value is amazing. The particular beard oil comes in 4 oz -though there are other sizes available, at the price of 1 oz of some competitors. If you ask me, it’s one of the best value beard oils you can get on that size.

I would say that this is the ideal beard oil for long beards. Otherwise, it will take some time until you finish 4 oz. And remember, most beard oils have a PAO of max 12 months. Therefore, you better make a wise choice.

Honest Amish Beard Oil

Honest Amish has a unique range of fine beard oils and other beard care products. I had the chance of trying out both this fragrance free beard oil and their beard balm. If you ask me, their balm is one of a kind.

The oil in question isn’t too far from being equally great to the balm.

It’s made of premium and natural ingredients and it gives you a subtle -if any really, scent. The scent derives mostly from the carrier oils. It’s better if we call it fragrance-free rather than scentless.

Performance wise, it’s one of the few beard oil that leave no man unhappy.

Needless to say that it doesn’t feel greasy at all. By the time you apply it and massage it into the roots, it absorbs fairly quickly, and it only leaves a moisturized and soft beard.

One thing to note is the 2oz bottle. It’s double the size of many beard oils available out there and it comes at the price of 1oz. This definitely makes it one of the best valued beard oils reviewed today.

If you’re looking for a top notch beard oil that comes with a great price to value ratio, this honest amish is the one you should go for.

Prospector Co. Beard Oil

The Prospector Co. beard oil is another sweet yet manly scented beard oil. It’s one of my favorites because of the way it smells.

The scent is subtle and the beard oil does the job great. Your beard will love it.

The price is a bit steep compared to other 1oz beard oils but you won’t regret it. After all, you only need a few drops per day which means that you won’t buy another one for at least three months after you get this one.

Woodman Beard Oil

The Woodman beard oil by the Bearded Bastard (cool name) is another beard oil with manly woodsy smell. The particular brand is around for some time now and it’s the particular beard oil is the preferred one for many bearded brothers out there.

Personally, I had read about it in a forum before I gave it try. And the praise was well justified.

If you decide to buy this, it definitely won’t let you down.

Lastly, it comes at a beautiful 1oz bottle, same size as the majority of beard oils.

Still wondering what beard oil to buy?

For all of you who had the patience to read through everything until here, I salute you. Hopefully, I was able to give you a couple of ideas on what to look for when it comes to beard oil.

If I still have to decide on the best beard conditioning oil, I would recommend the Beardbrand Tea Tree beard oil.

Besides being the most popular beard oil our there, my personal belief is that the particular beard oil is very similar to the others in terms of softening and conditioning a beard. I also like the refreshing scent of this particular oil that derives from tea tree.

But it’s not only that…

What makes it unique, is the whole story behind this brand.

I like everything about it. The bottle, the packaging, the story, and the bearded lifestyle they promote via their blog and tumblr page. SO, overall, I think it’s the best beard oil to buy when it comes down to decide on only one of them.

Let me know which one you like and if you have any other suggestions. As always, I welcome your comments and feedback.

Wet shaving enthusiast, ex-beard wearer and proud blogger of the Manliness Kit. Besides my interest in man grooming, I'm also a gadget geek (where most of my spare income goes), and passionate football (soccer) fan. I've got a beautiful girlfriend who puts up with me and my hobbies on daily basis and for that, I 'm very grateful.

I have been reading about oils recently and I’ve heard that the best oils are unrefined oils because the refining process kills much of the natural therapeutic plant properties.

The vast majority of cosmetic products like beard and shave oils are made from cosmetic grade oils which have been treated/refined with chemicals and heat to take away odour and colours and to make them last longer. Grapeseed oil for example is green and does not last very long. Not the pale yellow colour we often see it as.

Hey Gareth, thanks for the great comment. That’s very true. Best beard oils are usually the ones that have unrefined ingredients. If they are refined, it means that there has been a chemical purification procedure to remove the impurities of the oils (while removing odour and extending shelf life). As you say, certain (unrefined) oils don’t have long shelf life and this is why many great beard oils have short shelf life. That said, some beard oils indicate on their labels whether the ingredients are refined or not, so this is something that one could pay attention to.

I’ve checked a few brands that produce beards oils with unrefined oils. The refining process extends the shelf life of a product and depending on the ingredients, this might be the reason for shorter shelf life. Few carrier oils for example are susceptible to oxidations and they may have a shelf life of up to 6-8 months. Most essential oils have a shelf life of 1 to 5 years. Not necessarily true that the best ones have low shelf life, but from my personal experience, they do have. Nevertheless, I haven’t checked everything available in the market. However, from experience in the chemical industry, this happens quite often. In the end, it really depends on the ingredients being used in the mix.
Let me know your thoughts!

Great article — I took notes since I am interested in making my own blends. I noticed coconut oil doesn’t seem to figure into these products, though I have read praises for it elsewhere online. I intend to try it. Right now, because I am flat broke, I am using grapeseed oil (bought it at the 99 cent only store) plus a drop or two of my favorite after shaves (like Tabac, Bay Rum, and on occasion 4711 cologne). I just put the ingredients in my palm, blend with my hands, and apply. Smells great and my beard is soft and lustrous. Yes, the alcohol content of the after shave is kind of a no-no, but I use so little (just for the fragrance) and combine with enough oil that I doubt I am doing harm to my beard hair (or skin, for that matter). In any case, this is an “el cheapo” way of going about it and allows me to use up my favorite after shaves even though I stopped shaving long ago. When I have some extra cash I will invest in a few different carrier oils and work on my own blends using the breakdowns you have supplied as a general guide (doing great with just the grapeseed oil for now, though). Surely this is less expensive than going with the commercial or boutique blends out there, much as I would like to try a couple of them. I noticed on another website that discusses DIY beard oils that peppermint is extremely popular with the gents. Not my style, necessarily, but it’s worth mentioning. Each dog to his own tree, of course — this is what makes the beard oil phenomenon so attractive: you can, for not much money, concoct your own blend that suits your personal taste and even address some skin issues you might find the commercial or boutique blends do not. In any case, THANK YOU for such a great article. I’ve been curious about beard oils for some time now and you have done a great job with the rundown above.

Mr. Burlesk thank you for taking the time to read and comment my post. I’m happy that you found value in it and this gives me strength to write more insightful articles.

Coconut oil is great for DIY beard oil and it is indeed highly recommended as carrier. And since you mentioned that, I’ve already written a post on DIY beard oils that I believe it’s going to help you with your projects. Check it out:

The above discussion is just going in an informative way ,that is a few exchange of ideas really making the discussion worth.The Oil selection is purely based on the beard vitamins that are generally are favorable for one’s skin.

Have you tried Badass Beard oils and balms? If so i would appreciate your thoughts. The reason I originally went with them is they off sample sizes. Sadly it is one of the few who do offer sample sizes. I have requested samples from other companies and only one is sending samples of all scents in beard oils. I enjoyed your article and Thanks for your top 10!

Hi Mike, I’m glad you found the post helpful. I haven’t tried the particular brand but I’ll keep it in mind so I can include it in the list sometime soon. Sample packs are very useful and I positive that we’ll see more brands selling them in the future. How do you like the Badass range?

I’ve been using beard mountain oil and wax. It’s definitely helped my beardliness. I didn’t see it on your list anywhere. Just curious to how it might stack up against these. Anyone else use beard mountain?

What an amazing write up, I own a small beard oil company way down in New Zealand called Dr Stubs, and we are currently in the start up phase, I would love to send you some products to get your personal feedback, we do not have such a large market down here for beard oils and balms, so someone with as much exposure as what you have had would really help us out, with some good honest feedback.

Thank you for this article but there are a couple things that I wish to call out. First you state to “use an established brand”. This is a detriment to all the new makers that are coming along that are able to improve upon the status quo. It would be better advice to suggest gentlemen to sample and try various beard oils to find one that is best for them. The newer oils makers out there are offering up some great products, using all natural ingredients and at much better prices. Beard oil should not be a “luxury item”.

You also use the term “carrier” oils. A carrier oil is merely an oil used to “carry” another oil, often an essential oil to distribute and aid in dispersing. Oils like argan, almond & jojoba are the foundation and heart of the beard oil. They are the oils providing the key benefits with Vitamin E, anti-oxidants as well as anti-microbial benefits.

Also, all the oils you suggest are “one trick ponies”. They do not offer any differing formulas that would support any variation is hair types or even skin types (treating the skin where the hair grows is just as important as treating the hair). Not every man has the same exact hair and their needs will vary.

Overall it is awesome to see more information given around WHY beard oil is beneficial to promoting a healthy beard. More gents need to see that a few simple added steps can greatly improve their beard’s health.

JC, thank you for the comment and for your great input. I totally agree with all the points that you made and I’m glad that you took the time to write such an insightful comment. It’s obvious that you know what you’re talking about and you’ve got great knowledge in beard oil making. Thank you again.

I know that there are great beard oil makers that aren’t as established as other brands. I completely respect the time and effort someone puts in a new company and this is also how most of the companies start their journey. I agree with everything you said about the 1. better prices 2. great products 3. natural ingredients. That being said, please allow me to add a few points to what you mentioned and explain what I mean by selecting an established brand.

Most oils have a PAO (Period-After-Opening) of maximum 12 months after opening (which needs to be clearly stated on the label). This is something that small producers don’t include in their labels for undefined reasons. Besides that, there are high chances (again, not necessarily true) that a small maker doesn’t respect the shelf life of each ingredient since the inventory turnaround isn’t as frequent as for bigger brands. This can result in expired ingredients which impact the overall shelf life and quality of an oil.

Talking about labels, you’ll notice that most of the small makers don’t respect the regulations that have to do with either cosmetics or aromatherapy in which beard oil falls in. Examples are PAO, precautions, business address, allergens and core ingredients list (e.g. what we called carrier oils and artificial fragrances). I’m not referring to the trade secret which can be an essential oils blend that you have the option of not stating it in the ingredients.

These are all things that I’ve noticed in quite a few beard care products makers. Personally, before I buy something, I look at the labels and I need to be convinced that the particular company complies with everything that has to do with health and safety as well as good business practice. I’m not saying that all small makers are the same and it’s entirely my opinion (I respect every opinion) but I would personally prefer to go with a producer that gives me a peace of mind when buying/using the product.

I completely understand where you’re coming from and I respect the fact that many small beard oil makers comply with all of the above. I think that you will agree with me that this isn’t the case for the majority of producers. The average consumer isn’t aware of all the points we both made. This is why I would argue that someone would be better off with an established brand that makes an all natural beard oil.

Sorry for the long reply. Again, I’d like to thank you for your insightful comment. I’m very happy that knowledgeable people like you contribute to my blog. I wish you a great day.

This is one of the most comprehensive article about beard oils that I have read. I would like to add that the beard oil not only benefits for new starter, but also helps cure beard ruff for those who have grown beard for a long time. The beard oil gives a lot of moisture for skin and reduce beard ruff.

One brand I would recommend for dry skin is Seven Potions since it moisturizes my skin as crazy. The price is quite reasonable and you can actually use the product for a very long time.